Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

My name is Ben and I am relatively young and used to work for a regional company developing their Chinese market. Everything was going smoothly until the big recession hit home and I was laid off.

I tried to find other jobs but none that match my passion- international business.

So I sat down and realized my biggest assets are the fact that I speak fluent Chinese, have a huge base of Chinese contacts to back me up, been to China multiple times, and understand the business environment there well.

I thought about starting a consulting business that help companies outsource work to China; has anyone started a consulting business on here before? What I mean is that I can help companies find product suppliers in China, maybe help them do IT outsourcing; things like web design, graphic design, etc. 

Any advice? Is it even a viable idea to do so? I guess my biggest obstacle is how to get people to believe me? I know I can deliver solid results but others might have different ideas.

Thanks

Ben

there are TONS of jobs over there. why just move, even if to Taipei? I would if I 1) didn`t have major commitments in NY and 2) could speak Chinese like you do!

Kudos!!

 

There is a great group of guys here in NY who are Harvard B-School grads and they are members of ACG. You should connect to the NY Chapter of ACG and ask them. I remember meeting them at the Mets game/ACG event last summer but would have to find their card.

They consult to US companies that manufacture in China. maybe you could join them? or start your own firm and do some type of business partnership, development or alliance with them?
Good luck

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- Andrew
AndrewHazen.com
PrimeVisibility.com
InternetIdeas.net

Wow, you have a great skill set in speaking Chinese.  This is an ever growing economy in today`s world.   I believe you can position yourself in the consulting world given the current need for outsourcing to China.  You may want to reference our FREE entrepreneur guide as to how to start, operate and grow a business in today`s web 2.0 world.  We discuss outsourcing issues, as well as legal corporate formation.

learning multi languages makes a better business man.

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You know what? I am a Chinese as well but I have not traveled to China before because I am from Malaysia. Just an idea for you.

Since you are fluent with the language, why not source people/employees from Mainland China, train them for admin services required by businesses on the Internet such as article writing, search engine optimization, graphic designs and so on. If you provide complete and ample training, there will be people (like me) who want to lease one of your employees to work for me.

Hope over to AgentsOfValue.com for reference and take a peek about the model.


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http://www.SproutGeek.com - The #1 Blog for Small Business Owners, Startup Entrepreneurs and Marketers

So update,

I found partners on the ground in China and am in the final stages of negotiation between them. I found a few business friends who are very interested and have invested in my venture.

Now the big question is,

How to I market my consulting business??

I plan on offering primarily outsourcing services to clients; whether it be product or IT. I am fairly confident that I will be able to deliver highly quality results.

I want to keep this fairly small, aka a 1 person U.S. operation,  for now since my budget isn`t that big. I am terrible on the phone for whatever reason so cold calling is out of the question.

Does anyone have any advice as to how to market a service such as consulting?
I thought about doing email campaigns, direct mailings, and I am now sort of stuck. And I also did a LOT of Googling.
I think my service will be most appealing to entrepreneurs and companies who are interested in maybe starting a new line of products but don`t quite have the capital to do it within the U.S. Website like alibaba, tradekey, other B2Bs are impersonal and inefficient.

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 I agree with webjunky. You have excellent potential. Here is my plan of action for you:

1. Identify businesses that will profit from hiring from overseas through your service.

2. Walk to those businesses and introduce yourself.

3. Present your idea and simply tell them that "this is how your business is GOING to increase profits through me" and bring with you some example businesses that have increased their profits/stock value/etc.. from consoling similar to yours. Also, bring a firm action plan with you so that they know you are serious.

4. If you presented your idea/service correctly, most execs that you talk to will be asking you RIGHT THEN how they can proceed with you.

If there are no businesses that can benefit from your consoling services within your city, you are going to have to get in touch with people via websites such as "linkedin" or through a community such as this one.

Because interaction on the internet is very cheap, don`t expect that road to be very easy. It is ALWAYS perferable to present in PERSON to businesses that can benefit from your service.

Best wishes : )

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The Extra Money Blog
Make Extra Money Online - Paid Surveys
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Dubai Information
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Structured Settlements
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